"Thirteen years ago, Jeffrey Frederick, a former chef, took a new job as vice president of food and beverage operations, in charge of managing every food and beverage outlet in a resort owned by Harrah's Entertainment, on of the big gaming companies in Las Vegas."

A behind-the-scenes narrative about how the restaurant business is transitioning away from intuitive methods toward data-driven practices cites the examples of successful celebrity-run restaurants and culinary trendsetters to explain how today's revolutionary eateries are pioneering effective new approaches.

Award-winning author Mark Kurlansky, who wrote the bestesellers Salt andCod, here turns his keen eye to the beloved city he's been visiting for 30 years: Havana, Cuba. In this adoring travelogue/history, Kurlansky shares personal stories and offers details about the 500-year-old Caribbean city's past and present, people, culture, sports, and music, as well as its appearances in art and literature (yes, Hemingway is discussed). Havana is a complex place, and if you want a talented guide to help you understand this elegant yet downtrodden city, pick up Havana, which includes not only recipes but pen-and-ink drawings by the talented author.

Charts the relationships between women and the cities they live in, describing how a good walk in an urban setting has helped many a woman, both fictional and real, through art, history, literature and film, from Virginia Woolf to Holly Golightly.

Though he's afraid of heights, Stephen O'Shea decided to take a road trip across the Alps, visiting parts of France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Slovenia. Driving a souped-up muscle car, he traveled around hairpin turns, through quaint villages, and up and down (and up and down) steep mountain roads. While lightheartedly describing his adventure, he shares information about the people and places he encountered along the way and comments on the rugged area's appearances in history and fiction (covering everyone from Hannibal and Hitler to Mary Shelley, Sherlock Holmes, and Heidi). The Alps should pique the interest of those who enjoy reading fun travelogues full of cool information (Bill Bryson fans, we're talking to you!).

The author describes her relationship with friend and confidante Joan Erikson, whose struggles with widowhood, her own impending death, and numerous written works about aging inspired Anderson to accept life changes

When witty 73-year-old philosopher Daniel Klein wanted to learn how to age in the best way, he visited the Greek island of Hydra. In this charming account of his trip, Klein, who co-wrote the bestselling Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar, describes how he turned down the excitement of the new for the comfort of the familiar, going to a place he's known for four decades (bringing along with a suitcase of philosophy books). Taking his cues from philosophers (especially Epicurus) and the older locals he spent time with, Klein slowed down, drank coffee, visited with friends, pondered his experiences, and chronicled it all in this delightful meditation on living life to the fullest.

In this "unsentimental memoir" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), recently divorced 26-year-old Cheryl Strayed sets out on the 1,100-mile Pacific Coast Trail (PCT), walking solo from California, through Oregon, and on to Washington State. Strayed, a completely inexperienced hiker, had plenty of baggage with her, and we're not just talking about her too-heavy backpack. Though the book is centered around her time on the trail and her dealings with snakes, bears, and blisters, sections of Wild discuss the troubles that sent Strayed (back)packing, including her mother's death, the end of her marriage, and her own reckless behaviors.

Want more happiness in your life? Maybe you don't need a better job or to lose ten pounds -- maybe you just need a change of scenery. National Public Radio correspondent Eric Weiner traveled the globe, investigating not what happiness is, but where it is. His first stop was Rotterdam, where he consulted scientist Ruut Veenhoven, compiler of the World Database of Happiness, which ranks countries' happiness levels. From there, Weiner, a self-professed grump, visited such "happy" places as Iceland, India, Qatar, Great Britain, and America. The result? "A charming, funny and illuminating travelogue" (The Washington Post).